Day 20 – Golden Eagle Passport

eseidman1
Aug 3, 2016
5 min read

Date: Sunday, 31 July 2016

Time on Bike: 5:08:49

Total Travel Time: 8:40:32

Miles Covered Today: 63:07

Total Trip Miles: 1,269.9

Average Speed: 12.2, Maximum Speed: 34.1

From: Richardton, ND

To: Medora, ND

(Uploaded from Chinook, MT on 3 Aug 2016)

Great night's sleep at the hotel in Dickinson ND! Up & out early and dropped off & ready to get on my bike by 8:15 AM in Richardton, ND. That is just great for us! And the days go better when I am on my bike early!

I always feel so excited in the mornings to start my cycling adventures. I never know how the day will unfold. Ya got to be flexible… And for those of you who know me, that is very much not like me. I am a black & white type of guy. No grey. Even I have to be open to grey on cycling trips.

I am starting to question the data from my wind app… It said it was 6.8 MPH out of the North.

I may not be a good judge of wind speed, but it looks to me to be a heck of a lot higher than ~7 MPH!!!

More of that tar & crushed rock road to ride on this morning. Not surprising, still in the same county. But must have been completed longer ago as the tar/road is not as sticky!

I went by a Benedictine Monastery that was using wind power. Stopped to video it and also to point out the plant that I see being harvested & baled in a lot in fields. It has a very noticeable sweet fragrance and I have enjoyed its impact on my trip. Thank you Kim for IDing it as alfalfa for me. What do us city slickers know????

The bees like alfalfa too I am sure! That is why I am seeing all these bee hives off to the side of the roads.

Here is a fun video for you! I got the response I was hoping for!!

I soon entered Taylor, ND. I didn’t even know that Sinclair gas stations still existed!!!

Hey, you gotta see this tricycle & tractor wind sail spin… I need to harvest some of that wind power! But the real bummer was that I missed Taylor Horsefest by only one measly day!!! Maybe next year! Kim, you interested??

Highway 10 had these huge fields of Sunflowers. And they were big flowers. See for yourself!

Took my next break on a bridge over the the Green River in Gladstone, ND. Getting close to Dickinson now!

Gave my bro a call and we yakked for quite a long time. Too long a break in fact… I didn’t realize that I then had to climb out of that valley. My knees hurt.

In case you didn’t already know it, this part of the country is pretty conservative- a lot of Pro Life billboards & signs. And a lot of Trump signs. This was the "best" of the day!

Official arrival in Dickinson, ND! We have already been staying in Dickinson for one night and plan to take my rest day in a few days in the area as well. A home base for a while. That is nice. No packing & unpacking!

I see two cyclists loaded with gear getting off the road on the other side of the street. I immediately cut over. Oh my. Four, count them four, cross country cyclists!!! And why do cyclists cross the road? Food!!

We do our introductions and tell our stories. These four cyclists from Brookline, NY are traveling together on the Northern Tier west to east. That means they have already done the Rockies! They don’t look worse for the wear. Damn youngsters!! The biggest group of Northern Tierers I have seen so far! I am pumped up!

Right to Left: Nicki, Amy, Jason, Trey

I bought four crisps as they are locking & shutting down for the day. Gave Bunny a heads up where I was and she pulls in with Woz & meets the gang. We have a picnic on the grass in the shade (a real find!) next to the closed store. Bunny treats me to a grand feast! We dig into the crisps. But seeing Bunny & Woz is my real treat!

Bunny & Woz head back to the hotel. I want to push on to Medora, ND today. Still have quite a bit to do. It is hot. I am getting tired. The road looks long…

Old HW 10 swings around and parallels Interstate 94… again. I am losing my mojo. And then I see a mirage. No it is real. Two more Northern Tier cyclists!!

Come to find out, Ian & Erica are cycling with the group of four I met previously at the Donut Hole. Ian needed new cycling shoes in Medora and that is why they are behind their group a bit. No rush, they are all taking a break in Dickinson. I had suggested to them all to stay at the Motel6 that we are staying at. But they already had their reservations. Even the hot tub didn’t sway them. Safe travels kids!

I made it to Belfield and crashed under a tree. Shade!

It isn’t brutally hot,

but the ~15 MPH dry wind has beat me up but good. I drink all my water- what is left of my Gatorade in my water bottle and what is left in my CamelBak. I lay down and close my eyes. I think I actually dozed off for a while… I sit up and eat a pack of Jelly Belly Power Beans and a suck down a Cliff Mocha caffeinated energy gel pak. I get out the PowerBar Performance Energy Blasts and put one in each cheek. Ready for war now!

I decided I am getting on Interstate 94. I am supposed to stay on Old HW 10, but I have had enough of those steep, short hills and I need a change of scenery. I stop in the Cenex gas station at the freeway entrance. I ask to fill my water bottle with water & ice. I can see from the guy's response at the cash register I must look like crap! I top off everything with water & ice. Now I am set up to cycle to Medora, some 18 miles away!

A good decision. I make great time on the shoulder of Interstate 94. I feel rejuvenated. The marvels of modern sports nutrition!

I soon arrive at the visitor’s center for Painted Canyon/Theodore Roosevelt National Park.

I get off my bike. It is really crowded. I lock my bike… haven’t done that yet. I walk to see what everyone is looking at. WOW!!!!

I go inside the building and tell the young man at the register “I have been waiting 62 years to buy my Golden …” He stops me cold. Sorry, they only sell the Senior Pass (I still call it the Golden Eagle Passport… I like that better!) at the park entrance in Medora.

He thinks they close at 5 PM. It is like 4:20. I know it is about 8 miles away. He says, "Sure you can make it". I point to my cycling attire and tell him “I don’t think so." Not gonna happen today!

The sky is getting greyer by the minute to the east. I get on my bike and head for Medora. Well… what he neglected to tell me is that it is almost ALL downhill. And I mean a long, sweeping, glorious, serious downhill. I max out at 34 MPH!

I pull up to the main entrance and buy my pass at 4:52! And I get to finally use my line “I have been waiting 62 years to buy my Golden Eagle Passport.” Mission accomplished!